1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an enclosure for protecting optical fibers which include a splice section therein.
2. Description of Related Art
Prior art devices are known for the support and protection of optical fibers and the splices therein. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,363,440 and reissue U.S. Pat. No. 035,929. Frequently such devices simply coil optical fibers in an enclosure making them very difficult to sort and follow for interconnection and cross-connection referencing. It is also very important to provide sufficient slack so that an optical fiber can be respliced if a splice either becomes bad, or for some reason, was not properly made in the first place. Another problem encountered in the prior art is that an optical fiber must maintain a radius greater that 1xc2xd inches or signal degradation may occur. Moreover, if the fiber is not shielded, it can be damaged during the opening and closing of the storage cabinet.
It is clear from the foregoing that there is a need for an optical fiber enclosure which can protect an optical fiber splice and yet provide sufficient slack for future repair purposes and, at the same time, accommodate a significant number of different fibers in a way that permits the fibers to be interconnected and cross-connected readily. It was in the context of the foregoing need that the present invention arose.
Briefly described, the invention comprises a high-density, small fiber optic enclosure that permits optical fibers, and their splices, to be layered in a FIG. 8-lite configuration. The optical fibers enter the enclosure through a first or entrance aperture in the bottom and proceed onto hooks and clips around the interior periphery thereof. A resilient splice holder snugly receives the splice section. From there the optical fiber crosses over a hinged section and loops around the hooks and clips in the opposite direction and then crosses back to the first enclosure section and out a second, or exit, aperture. Up to 10, and possibly up to 24 or more, optical fibers including splice sections can be layered upon each other in a similar fashion, each creating a FIG. 8, or butterfly-like, pattern on top of the other optical fibers. The hooks and clips which hold on to the optical fibers are spaced in such a fashion as to guarantee that the turn radius of any individual fiber is always greater than 1xc2xd inchesxe2x80x94the minimum acceptable turn radius for an optical fiber. The cabinet or enclosure can then be easily closed and the optical fibers at the hinged section do not interfere with each other because they overlap. This technique permits the layers on both sides to be exposed when the enclosure is opened thereby facilitating work between the layers. In this way installation and repair time is reduced by permitting the installer to be able to view and work on both layers at the same time. It further eliminates the time consuming and frustrating practice of having to flip between various layers to follow fibers for interconnection and cross-connection referencing purposes.
The foregoing is an acceptable approach if the optical fibers are protected with an appropriate resilient plastic coating. If, on the other hand, the optical fibers are not protected by such a coating, then the invention can be supplemented by using pairs of opposing S-shaped hollow Fiber Tubes to shield the naked optical fibers at the hinge section of the enclosure. The two opposing S-shaped hollow fiber tubes look like a large X at the hinge section and prevent damage to the optical fibers at that location.
The invention may be more fully understood by reference to the following drawings.